Olivier Giroud puts Arsenal legends in the shade with his Champions League heroics

And Gunners midfielder Mathieu Flamini insists it is high time people started taking the hit man seriously.

Since Giroud's £12m arrival from Montpellier, the France international has struggled to capture the imagination of the Arsenal fans.

They have wanted a stellar name to lead the line who they see as fit to fill the boots of Thierry Henry, Robin Van Persie, Dennis Bergkamp and Ian Wright.

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“All great strikers have to respond in the big games and this was a good test for us and he responded well”

Mathieu Flamini

But after becoming only the seventh man to reach double figures for Arsenal in the Champions League proper with his hat-trick against Olympiakos, Giroud has eclipsed the lot of them.

He has taken 21 matches to hit that ten-goal mark - a game less than Henry and eight less than Van Persie.

What is more, Giroud's strikes have come in vital group-deciders and against strong outfits from Germany and Italy.

Which is why it was of little surprise to Flamini that Giroud single-handedly rescued Arsenal's attempt to make it to their 16th successive knockout phase.

"All great strikers have to respond in the big games and this was a good test for us and he responded well," Flamini said.

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VETERAN: Mathieu Flamini

"It was a great performance from him and he helped the team very much and is a top scorer. Olivier did a great job because every time he had an opportunity, he put it in.

"Even when he turned his ankle, he took the opportunity to recover when he went down. Then after a few seconds he scored a second goal which was incredible.

Even Wenger seemed to have some doubts earlier this season, dropping Giroud to give Theo Walcott a chance to operate up front.

"I think competition is very important in the big teams. Competition makes players stronger and that is what happened," Flamini added.

"It is tough competition up front and Olivier is responding very well because he is playing better and better. That is part of the game and if you want to play at a big club, you have that competition."